Black Stars defender Tariq Lamptey says playing at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will be an ‘amazing’ feeling for him as he targets winning the competition.
Tariq made his Black Stars debut against Brazil in an international friendly ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The tournament was his first international competition with Ghana having played for England’s youth teams before switching nationality.
Ghana is on the verge of qualifying for the next edition of the AFCON to be staged in Ivory Coast next year. Tariq, who is yet to feature in the continental showpiece believes winning the trophy in his maiden appearance will be ‘amazing.’
“I am very excited [about the prospect of playing at the AFCON]. Obviously, there are a few steps before that — qualification first and league games. I have to play to get myself into a competitive form,” he told Joy Sports in an exclusive interview.
“But it’s an amazing competition and the ultimate goal will be to go and lift it. It will be amazing to play there and experience it and hopefully, we can do well.”
The Brighton and Hove Albion defender made two appearances for the Black Stars during the 2022 World Cup, starting the game against South Korea after playing as a substitute in the opening game against Portugal.
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<h2>The 2023-2024 Premier League game between Manchester City and Arsenal on Sunday, March 31, might be coming too early for <a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/03/18/pep-guardiola-calls-manchester-city-vs-arsenal-epl-clash-a-final/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">coach Pep Guardiola</a> and his boys.</h2>
<p>Manchester City and Arsenal are two of the major contenders for the Premier League title which means that the game is like a final for the two clubs.</p>
<p>Arsenal are going into the matchday 30 Premier League encounter on top of the league table, a point above third-placed Manchester City. This means that if City win and second-placed Liverpool lose to Brighton at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Pep Guardiola will end the weekend on top of the league table.</p>
<p>Unfortunately for Pep Guardiola, Manchester City are going into the league game with a series of injuries woes mostly from the just concluded FIFA international break.</p>
<p>Three Manchester City key players, defensive trio Kyle Walker, John Stones, and Manuel Akanji ended the international break with different degrees of injuries. They are likely to miss the top-of-the-table clash if they are not certified fit before Saturday.</p>
<p>Walker sustained a hamstring injury during England's 1-0 defeat to Brazil on March 23, while Stone suffered an injury in England's 2-2 draw with Belgium on March 26.</p>
<p>As for Akanji, he suffered a knock while on international duty with Switzerland. He returned to the Etihad earlier than expected to commence his recuperation.</p>
<p>The aforementioned players are expected to undergo further examination to determine their availability for the clash at Etihad on Sunday which will kick off at 4:30 p.m.</p>
<p>Pep Guardiola could also be without Ederson, Kevin de Bruyne, and Jack Grealish who are still battling to return to full fitness long before the international break.</p>
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<h2><a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/02/01/nottingham-forest-coach-hails-taiwo-awoniyis-return/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Super Eagles of Nigeria striker, Taiwo Awoniyi,</a> currently has the best shot-conversion rate in the English Premier League for two successive seasons.</h2>
<p>Taiwo Awoniyi, who has been struggling with different degrees of injuries since he joined the club from German Bundesliga side Union Berlin on July 1, 2022, finished last season as the player with the best shot-conversion rate, and he is currently on the verge of achieving the same feat this season.</p>
<p>In the two seasons, the 26-year-old Nigerian striker featured in a total of 41 league games out of a possible 76 league games due to a series of fitness issues.</p>
<p>The number of games Awoniyi featured in amounted to 2,352 minutes out of 6,840 minutes. In those minutes, the Nigeria international scored a total of 16 goals.</p>
<p>A report by Sky Sports confirmed that Awoniyi has a 28.6 percent shot conversion rate. While Manchester City forward, Erling Haaland has a 26.1 percent shot conversion rate.</p>
<p>The aforementioned strikers are closely followed by Callum Wilson of Newcastle United (24per percent), Diogo Jota of Liverpool (22.5 percent), and Ivan Toney of Brentford (21.4 percent).</p>
<p>Note that Haaland, seen as the best striker in the Premier League, currently has 52 goals across the two seasons, but that doesn't mean he has the best shot-conversion rate in the league. When the number of games played is put side-by-side with the number of goals scored, Taiwo Awoniyi has been unstoppable this season and last season.</p>
<p>Recall that Awoniyi missed 11 league games last season due to injury issues, and <a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/02/19/nottingham-forest-confirms-taiwo-awoniyis-new-injury/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he is on the verge of missing more games this season due to the same reason.</a></p>
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<p>Nigerian football star, Victor Osimhen didn’t make it to the top ten shortlist for the 2023 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award. Victor Osimhen was one of the hottest strikers in the world as he banged in goals to set individual records and helped his team to break age-long boundaries. In the season (2022-2023) […]</p>
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